Several million people in the United States, as well as abroad, Black, Latin and Caucasian, have overcurly or wavy unmanageable hair. To overcome this unwanted characteristic the excess curl or wave is relaxed or straightened by treatment with certain strongly alkaline lotions, creams or gels, all of which are corrosive, and capable of irritating the scalp or skin during the time required for treatment unless kept separated therefrom during the process of treatment.
Temporary alteration of the curliness or wave of the hair can be achieved with water and the use of rollers, pincurls or blow waving. After the hair is dry, the new shape will hold. However, once the hair is wet again, it will return to its original curly or wavy shape. The only way to create a permanent change in hair curliness or excessive wave pattern is to treat the hair with fluids in the form of lotions, gels or creams which contain chemicals that are strongly alkaline, and to work the hair by smoothing out the hair with firm pressure while wetted with these chemicals. Hair which has been relaxed or straightened in this manner can then be subjected to wet-set styling. The straightening process is often repeated three or four times during the course of a year.
The relaxing fluid must be carefully applied so as not to overprocess the hair. However, premature removal of the relaxing composition will fail to cause a permanent change. No base relaxing methods now employed treat the hair directly with the corrosive chemical composition by combining onto the hair without protecting the scalp, with the result that patrons with sensitive scalps, or with inexperienced operators, often have considerable discomfort or pain during the treatment, and in addition the patrons may have chemical burns due to the action of the strong alkali on the scalp, or around the ears and face. Chemical burns due to strong alkali produce necrosis which may extend slowly for several hours. These burns may later blister or scab over and become unsightly, as well as resulting in a more serious injury. The extent of injury corresponds to the duration of treatment required for each particular individual, and intensity of action.
The present invention relates to a device for use in relaxing and straightening overly-curly or wavy hair, and a method for use of this device. The device enables the hair to be "worked" with the relaxing cream on a board, with paper placed under the lock of hair in such a manner that the cream does not reach the scalp during "working". Thus the patron avoids discomfort and burns.